Peel Acres

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The Collection explores some of the world's most exciting record collections.

The Collection explores some of the world's most exciting record collections, sharing the infinite stories that spring from the music within them.

The Collection explores some of the world's largest and most exciting record collections, picking out the best of the best tracks, and sharing the infinite stories that spring from those discoveries.

Peel Acres - Damon Albarn

The Collection: Peel Acres: Damon Albarn

Damon Albarn

BBC Radio 6 Music - The Collection, Peel Acres, Damon Albarn

Tom Ravenscroft invites Damon Albarn to explore John Peel’s record collection.

Blur frontman and Gorillaz founder Damon Albarn is Tom Ravenscroft’s first guest to Peel Acres - helping Tom pick out records from his dad John Peel’s legendary record collection.

Blur frontman and Gorillaz founder, Damon Albarn is Tom Ravenscroft’s first guest to Peel Acres; lending a hand (and two ears) in making sense of his dad’s vast record collection - tens of thousands of albums and singles collected over a lifetime. Damon first visited John Peel’s home back in the late 90s, when Blur recorded a session for his Radio 1 show.

Presented by Tom Ravenscroft
Produced by Kevin Core

Episode Sleeve Notes:

Track 1: Kurious Oranj - The Fall (from I Am Kurious Oranj)

Damon instantly hones in on I Am Kurious Oranj, a 1988 album by The Fall which was written to soundtrack a ballet, in collaboration with Scottish dancer Michael Clark. Credited as John Peel’s favourite band, the post-punk outfit was led by Mark E Smith - the only constant band member in an ever changing line up.

Track 2: Please No More Sad Songs - The Idle Race (from Idle Race)

Taking “a complete punt”, Damon next pulls out a 1969 album by the Birmingham band The Idle Race - who he’s surprised to discover is the first record produced by Jeff Lynne, who also provides lead vocals. After this album failed to chart, he made the move to… The Move, who later become Electric Light Orchestra (best known for the track Mr Blue Sky).

Track 3: Lady Rachel - Kevin Ayers (from Joy of a Toy)

Damon’s next pick is another 1969 record, and one he remembers from his own parents’ (much more limited) collection. Joy of a Toy was the debut solo album of Kevin Ayers, a founding member of rock band Soft Machine. He compares the “classic English whimsy” of Ayers’s voice to that of Syd Barrett, Pink Floyd’s original frontman and lyricist.

Track 4: Why Diddle - Blah Blah Blah

The next pick is the B side to a 7” single by Blah Blah Blah, a band from Clacton-on-Sea in Essex, which Damon introduces à la Peel. Tom compares their sound to the avant-garde music of Captain Beefheart.

Track 5: Save Yourself - Soft Machine (from The Soft Machine)

Fun fact: Damon’s dad, Keith Albarn briefly managed the Soft Machine. This debut album is the only one to feature previous pick, Kevin Ayers - alongside lead vocals from Robert Wyatt. Tom reveals that Wyatt was a regular visitor to Peel Acres and still occasionally calls now (he’s known to leave wonderfully long answerphone messages).

Track 6: We Shall Overcome - Mahalia Jackson

The next pick is “The Queen of Gospel”, Mahalia Jackson - who is considered one of the greatest voices of the 20th century and one Damon has known since a child. With a singing career spanning over 40 years, she also took an active role in the American civil rights movement and sang just before Martin Luther King Jr delivered his famous “I Have a Dream speech”.

Damon is a fan of early gospel vocal quartets, and says his favourite classical piece is A Child of Our Time, by British composer Michael Tippett - which includes sections of spirituals. Which leads on to talking about polyphony - that is, combining a number of parts, which each form an individual melody and harmonise with each other. He references composer Pérotin, who developed early polophonic work in Notre Dame, Paris in the 12th century.

Track 7: From Poems and Songs of Middle Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien

The A side of this 1967 album features writer J. R. R. Tolkien reading poems from his The Lord of the Rings and The Adventures of Tom Bombadil books. Side B features songs from Middle Earth, with music composed by Donald Swann - who features on piano, accompanying the fittingly named singer William Elvin.

Track 8: Alone Again Or - Love

Damon’s final choice, by the LA psychedelic rock band Love, was apparently a tour bus favourite for Blur. This track appears on their third album Forever Changes which, despite only moderate success in the 1967 charts, is regularly named among the greatest albums of all time.

The Collection: Peel Acres

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Tom Ravenscroft invites guests to Peel Acres: the home of John Peel's music collection.

Tom Ravenscroft invites a different guest each week to Peel Acres: the home of his dad, former BBC Radio DJ John Peel (who passed away in 2004), and his legendary music collection.

6 Music's Tom Ravenscroft invites a different guest each week to Peel Acres: the home of his dad, former BBC Radio DJ John Peel (who passed away in 2004), and his legendary music collection.

John was an English DJ, broadcaster and journalist. His broadcasting career spanned five decades, and he was known for hosting his regular Peel Sessions on his BBC Radio 1 show. He played an instrumental role in the early careers of many bands, including Pulp, The Smiths, The Undertones and The White Stripes.

Tom's guests will lend a hand (and two ears) in making sense of this vast record archive, which comprises tens of thousands of albums and singles, built over a lifetime and meticulously catalogued.

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